Astronaut Alan Bean To Visit Discovery Museum

BRIDGEPORT — Astronaut Alan Bean will make a rare area appearance as host of a lecture and slide show at The Discovery Museum at 7 pm on Friday, April 13. Mr Bean, the fourth of only 12 men to walk on the moon, will share his experiences as a pilot, NASA astronaut and spacecraft commander as he helped establish 11 world records in space and astronautics.

The lecture will also showcase Mr Bean’s photographs and paintings, expressions of his experiences in space exploration. An art student since 1962, Mr Bean describes his artwork as a way to record “mankind’s first exploration of another world” and celebrate what he terms may be “our generation’s greatest contribution to human history.”

Mr Bean adds to the scientific import of his work by sprinkling actual moon dust or pressing the heels of lunar astronaut boots into the still-soft paint of his works, symbolizing the prints he left in the moon’s surface 239,000 miles away.

During his 59-day flight of Skylab Mission II, Mr Bean also set the world record of traveling more than 24 million miles. He also served as the lunar module pilot for the Apollo XII moon landing. He continues to support space exploration and inspire future astronauts through his artwork and limited lecture tour.

Mr Bean’s most recent limited edition print, “Right Stuff Field Geologists,” features an image of Apollo  17 Commander Eugene A. Ceman handing a lunar sample bag to Lunar module pilot and doctor of geology Harrison “Jack” Schmitt on the Taurus-Littrow Valley floor of the moon. On December 13, 1972, when Mr Bean, Mr Ceman and Mr Schmitt left the moon, they carried with them 240 pounds of lunar samples, more than any other mission.

Copies of Mr Bean’s limited edition prints, including his most recent print and Apollo: An Eyewitness Account, a book of his words and paintings, will be available for purchase at the event. Works may also be signed by Mr Bean during a reception planned for Saturday, April 14, from 11 am to 2 pm.

Tickets for the limited seating lecture are $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12 and will be sold on a first come, first serve basis from the museum’s ticket office at 203-372-3521, extension 125. To learn about other museum programs and exhibits visit the museum’s Web site at www.discoverymuseum.org. The Discovery Museum is at 4450 Park Avenue.